IBT Staff Reporter

Wall Street was slightly higher in volatile trade on Friday as the S&P 500 fell below the level reached during the market flash crash earlier this month before muscling into positive territory.

The number of mass layoffs by U.S. employers rose in April led by manufacturers who shed workers even as the economy began to recover.

Wall Street was slightly higher in volatile trade on Friday as the S&P 500 fell below the level reached during last month's market flash crash before muscling into positive territory.

The latest study published in the Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiary reveals older Australians as the country's primary consumers of antidepressant drugs, despite higher rates of depression observed among younger population.

Pregnant women who drink six cups of coffee every day may have smaller babies than women who consume less caffeine, according to a Dutch study.

(Reuters) - People using cholesterol-lowering statins have a higher risks of liver dysfunction, kidney failure, muscle weakness and cataracts and such side effects of the drug should be closely tracked, doctors said on Friday.

(Reuters) - Older women with early stage breast cancer can safely skip radiation therapy and go straight to taking pills that help keep tumors from coming back, researchers reported on Thursday.

Abbott Laboratories Inc will pay $3.72 billion to acquire the branded generics business of India's Piramal Healthcare , as global drugmakers look to boost their presence in emerging markets.

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Cancer survivors might want to try yoga to sleep better and have more energy, according to a new study that will be presented at a meeting in early June.

Toyota Motor Corp said it would take a $50 million stake in U.S. electric carmaker Tesla Motors, a move that gives the Japanese automaker a chance to repair its dented public image and vaults the California start-up on to the world stage.

Abbott Laboratories Inc will pay $3.72 billion to acquire India's Piramal Healthcare's pharmaceutical solutions business, as global drugmakers look to boost their presence in emerging markets.

The world's largest bilateral trade gap -- and how to narrow it -- will be the focus of high-level China-U.S. talks in Beijing next week, with export barriers taking center stage and the yuan lurking on the side.

Wall Street was set for a lower open on Friday as concerns over the euro-zone debt crisis and U.S. financial reform fractured investor confidence in risky assets.

PepsiCo Inc said it is planning to up its investment in China by $2.5 billion over the next three years, as it sees more growth in the market.

It's not easy to balance on a two-legged stool, but the heads of some big U.S. industrial companies might need to try that stunt again.

Prudential boss Tidjane Thiam is struggling to make headway with skeptical investors who question the value of his $35.5 billion acquisition of AIA.

Opel Chief Executive Nick Reilly and labor leader Klaus Franz have called a joint press conference for 1200 GMT (8 a.m. ET) to inform on significant progress in the restructuring of Opel, the carmaker said on Friday.

Stock index futures fell on Friday as the recent sell-off stemming from the euro-zone debt crisis and U.S. financial regulation has ruptured investor confidence, causing a flight from risky assets.

Stock index futures fell on Friday as the recent sell-off stemming from the euro-zone debt crisis and U.S. financial regulation has ruptured investor confidence, causing a flight from risky assets.

S&P 500 index June futures contracts fell on Friday below 1,060, the lowest level hit during the still unexplained market plunge on May 6, which some analysts see as technical support level.

The Senate approved a sweeping Wall Street reform bill on Thursday night, capping months of wrangling over the biggest overhaul of financial regulation since the 1930s.

Corrects paragraph four to read wage freeze, not hike

Opel Chief Executive Nick Reilly and labor leader Klaus Franz have called a joint press conference for 1200 GMT to inform on significant progress in the restructuring of Opel, the carmaker said on Friday.

The Bank of Japan raised its outlook for the economy Friday, citing signs of sustained recovery in domestic demand, but also warned that Europe's debt debacle posed a risk to the global economy.

A meeting on Monday between the top brass of Samsung Electronics Co and Sony Corp will likely focus on further cooperation in LCD panels, with the Japanese electronics maker facing tight supplies in the sector.

British Airways posted a record 531 million pounds full-year loss on Friday, hit by the recession, industrial disputes and the winter snow, though its ambitions to break even next year could by hit by more strikes.

China's largest oil producer, PetroChina Co Ltd said Friday it plans to earmark $60 billion to increase its overseas oil and natural gas output. In a statement, the company said it aimed to increase the output to 200 million tons per year, or equivalent to 4 million barrels output per day.

India's wheat procurement hit a record 31 million tones so far and the country is likely to export a major chunk of it mainly due to lack of storing facilities. This season's whet procurement mounted to 31 million tones, almost eight times its target of 4 million, forcing authorities to pile up nearly 7 million tones of grain under tarpaulin in Punjab and Haryana, its two main wheat producing states.

Gold for immediate delivery was seen trading at $1165.41 an ounce at 11.30 a.m Singapore time while US gold futures for June delivery was at $1171.84 an ounce. Equity markets across Asia fell Friday with Japan's benchmark Nikkei average sliding more than 3 percent and hitting a five-month low as exporters were hurt after the yen strengthened against the euro on worries about disunity among euro zone leaders on how to address the region's debt crisis.